Free Web Novel–Sssssst.
The protagonist sharply turned their head, face full of wariness.
[...?]
But there was nothing there.
Only a pile of books that had toppled off the shelf.
–Flap. Flap.
Pages fluttered as a breeze blew through.
Only then did the protagonist exhale in relief and clutch their chest.
[Whew, I’m going to have a nervous breakdown.]
A few audience members snorted at the subtitle’s fresh but mistranslated English for “Was that a hallucination?”
–Sssssst.
While the protagonist browsed the foreign-language section, the pile of books behind them began to move again.
[It’s quiet here.]
As the protagonist muttered to themself, the books began to float up one by one, fluttering like stingray wings.
Oblivious, the protagonist trudged forward with the lamp.
What the—? What’s with those books again?
“Hey! Look behind you, you idiot!”
Audience members clenched their hands in anxiety. They’d seen what the books had done to the protagonist over the past fifty minutes.
Nearly suffocated by sand falling from a book.
Chased by venomous snakes from a reptile guide.
Allying with Captain Hook, then getting beat up by Peter Pan and Wendy.
“Behind! Behind!”
As the audience yelled, life-sized books hovered ominously behind the protagonist, stalking like prey.
And then— freёwebnovel.com
Sensing something, the protagonist froze, swallowed hard, and whirled around.
[...?]
In that instant, the books shot upward so fast that all the protagonist saw was the earlier heap.
But...
[The book is empty...?]
The pile had shrunk significantly.
And the remaining books, eerily lit by the lamp, began to surround the protagonist menacingly.
The protagonist took a tentative step toward the pile of books...
[No.]
...then spun around again to face the books trailing them like stalkers.
After a second of silence—
“Kyaaaaa!”
“Aaaaaah!”
Human and books screamed in unison.
The protagonist swung the sword they’d received from Captain Hook madly, and the startled books scattered into hiding.
Their whispers echoed through the dark cinema.
“It’s scary!”
“See? The rumors were true. There’s a terrifying human roaming the library.”
“Look at the ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) ink on that blade—is it our blood? Kyaaa!”
Embarrassed, the protagonist sheathed the sword and addressed the hiding books.
“What are you talking about? A terrifying human?”
“Kyaaa!”
...When an offended Spanish textbook screamed first and translation books snorted with annoyance, the audience chuckled.
The protagonist placed a hand on their waist and said,
“I won’t hurt you, so come out.”
“Can you promise?”
“I promise.”
“All right... then I’ll—!”
“Wait.”
A German textbook spoke in a husky voice.
“We’re in control here. If any of you move while exiting...”
“Come out now.”
“Yes, sir.”
The audience laughed at the German book’s abrupt change of tone.
Soon the fluttering books emerged. Their pages opened like mouths, whispering as they moved.
“Who are you?”
“I am a German textbook! Guten Tag!”
Each book cheerfully greeted in its own language. A dialogue between the protagonist and the foreign-language books ensued.
“Why are you hiding here?”
“We heard rumors of a terrifying human.”
“A terrifying human?”
They told how the books panicked at news of the so-called “book killer” roaming the library.
The protagonist’s expression grew serious—they realized the rumors weren’t about them.
“There’s someone else in the library.”
On their first day as a security guard, everything began when they opened a mysterious book titled Nostalgia.
At 5′9″, the protagonist shrank to the size of a hardbound book, and characters and monsters burst forth.
So talking books weren’t surprising—but another presence in the library was.
‘Who is it?’
‘That creepy old librarian guy?’ freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
‘Maybe it’s a split personality twist?’
Audiences eagerly speculated, forgetting all about NewBlack.
“But why do you look like books?”
“Hm?”
“Even Peter Pan or The Emperor’s New Clothes had characters emerging and moving.”
“Oh, that pervert guy? The exhibitionist?”
Audience laughter rippled—recalling the king parading with only a cleverly placed cloak.
The foreign-language books smiled and said,
“We’re story-less books. All we have are...”
“Grammar, vocabulary.”
“Not much to show.”
The background OST shifted slightly, and as the tone turned toward music, the audience realized, “Musical time!”
“But we have words—so many words.”
Like an animated film, the books bobbed their spines and greeted in many languages.
“And we have songs.”
At once they began singing. A French chanson, a Mexican-style tune like a vaquero’s ballad...
Then a full song in English:
We have no story to show
No protagonist to know
But we’re full of dreams you see
As the lyrics from “Thousand Dreams” played, the books circled and performed.
Some wore sunglasses and teased, “Want to travel?”
They whisked the protagonist into a waltz, paper swirling.
It was a cheerful, uplifting number.
“This is great.”
“I need to download this.”
“Title? ‘Thousand Dreams,’ I guess.”
Five books led the song around the stunned protagonist.
...
Meanwhile, in the original musical, the protagonist was a teen piano prodigy who lost family in a drunk-driving accident and then their hands in rehab.
We have hundreds of languages
Thousands of dreams
And this humble shelf
Unlike the gifted protagonist, these books dreamed of bringing joy but lacked the talent to do so. They sang about dreams: don’t equate yourself with them, but cherish them.
The audience smiled.
“The lyrics are hard to catch, but it’s lovely.”
They’d grasped the gist despite rapid subtitles. The song’s cheerfulness lifted the weighty theme.
“When does the OST drop?”
“This feels like an original number—who composed it?”
As they nodded to remember, some wondered, “Where’s the NewBlack song?”
Most had forgotten NewBlack entirely.
At the end of the Nostalgia premiere, credits rolling, viewers trudged out looking dazed. Concession stand staff noted:
“They didn’t even eat their popcorn.”
“The soda’s flavorless.”
Usually tubs are empty, but here they were full.
“They must’ve been really into it.”
Overhearing:
“This is my favorite film now.”
“It was so fun—I’m going again.”
“I’ll bring my parents at Chuseok.”
“This’ll go viral, right?”
A distributor’s ENG crew asked for interviews.
“Might we have a word?”
“Absolutely!”
“The songs were amazing—highly recommend.”
“I saw the musical in America; this adaptation is scrumptious.”
“I’ll bring my boyfriend next time!”
Exit chatter praised the music. A friend group buzzed:
“Nothing’s up online yet?”
“No, first Korean screening. OST will drop later.”
“Wish we’d waited.”
“‘Falling Stars’ was great...”
Someone said:
“I liked the foreign-language books’ song.”
“Next best after ‘Falling Stars’.”
“But didn’t they say a NewBlack song would appear?”
“It never did.”
Then:
“Idiot—this was the NewBlack song!”
“What?”
“It sounded like NewBlack’s vocals.”
“Oh!”
A hush fell.
“It was NewBlack’s? I expected an idol track.”
“Me too.”
They’d assumed a K-pop cameo but missed the nuance.
Typing “NewBlack Nostalgia” in search revealed director interviews crediting “Thousand Dreams” to the director.
“Wait, really?”
“It fit so seamlessly; must’ve been lip service.”
“That NewBlack member composed it?”
They were stunned. A Broadway musical film with an idol’s song—yet it blended perfectly.
“Wow.”
“So he really did it all?”
Fans realized the composer-idol’s reputation wasn’t just hype. Online communities buzzed about copyright earnings and hit ballads like “Wind Flower” and “Nine.” But a musical number was unexpected.
“This is incredible.”
“He’s done it all?”
People leaving cinemas gaped at their phones. Bloggers posted reviews:
[Premiere] Nostalgia screening report (Spoilers)
By Movieismylife
John Edwards’ new film was the talk of the red carpet. Everyone thought an idol song would appear—wait until release. At the key scene, everyone went “Huh? Huh? Huh!” The NewBlack song quality was astonishing. Edwards is a master; the addition along with “Falling Stars” elevated the film. Idol concerns? Relax—they nailed it.
Comments:
“Thanks for the review!”
“Amazing!”
“Can’t wait to see it.”
“I kept hearing ‘Falling Stars.’”
“What about the NewBlack song?”
As praise for both songs spread, curiosity—and ticket sales—soared. Idol forums lit up:
“Curious about the NewBlack song.”
“Maybe just PR?”
“There’s no way all good reviews are real.”
“They must be paying.”
“Didn’t Lemon Ent. already do this with TNT vs. TeenSpirit?”
“Yeah, it’s all copied comments.”
“Gyuho must’ve pulled strings.”
“Fans, stay strong.”
Negative posts flooded too; moderators deleted threads.
“Oh?”
“I think ‘Falling Stars’ leaked.”
“The director’s so good.”
Worldwide, official channels and NewBlack TV uploaded the “Falling Stars” clip, including Rupert Dean’s English cover.
In Korea, NewBlack’s Ri-hyuk cover went up. Views rose steadily.
Meanwhile NewBlack members were in Hongdae with the Nostalgia cast.
I spoke up.
“Director.”
“Yes?”
“Some visiting foreigners said they’re surprised by how much we eat.”
Junghyun smiled warmly, “That’s right.”
...
“So please don’t keep seeing us that way.”
The cast laughed at our endless meat-eating. The interpreter corrected them, “That’s not typical,” and they laughed again.
Interpreter: “I had two servings...”
Jo Gyu-ho: “We end in two as well!”
Junghyun: “Even the tens digit was two—22 servings.”
Clearing his throat, the director changed the subject. They showed off the neon signs as we said,
“This is Hongdae.”
“Hong-dae.” Foreigners practiced the pronunciation.
“Yes, Hongdae is popular with young Koreans. Ri-hyuk, it’s like...”
“Melrose Avenue.”
“Like Melrose.”
After lunch, we filmed a guide to Korean hotspots.
“Wow!”
“It’s so pretty!”
“NewBlack...”
“Hey! I’m in Hongdae right now...”
With cameras, lights, and security, crowds screamed and snapped photos. It was twice as loud as expected.
“Bella unnie, you’re so pretty!”
Bella Page tucks her hair back and smiles at a swooning college student, drawing laughter.
As we tried to move to the next location, someone called out:
“Excuse me!”
Darting through the crowd was an unexpected figure—our fellow cast member Ha Eun-seong in stage costume, looking delighted.
‘Eun-seong!’
Why was she here? But that wasn’t the point.
“Eun-seong! If you don’t stop—!”
“Argh!”
Thunk.
A bodyguard grabbed Eun-seong under the arm like a rolled-up mat, prompting laughter as she squealed.
